By Cory McKeown with photo by Melanie Epping

Max is truly the “Gentle Ben” of the dog world

Max’s previous owner had a progressive disability and could no longer care for him. We know that it broke her heart to give him up because he is a wonderful dog and undoubtedly gave her much joy and companionship. Maybe because he lived with a disabled person, or maybe because he is just such a gentle soul, this big shepherd mix is a very sensitive and empathetic guy.

Recently, he took a road trip with one of his human friends to a home where elderly and disabled people reside. He was absolutely the hit of the day as he made his “rounds,” saying hi to everyone in his quiet way. One elderly lady was so enamored with this sweet 5-year-old dog she asked if he could spend the day in her room and keep her company!

Max, even though he is “tutored,” still has an eye for lovely canine ladies and would be a great companion for a girl dog. Ever the gentleman, though, his enthusiasm is confined to whispering sweet nothings – nothing ill-behaved about this guy! He would make a very good therapy or visiting dog, as he loves everyone – almost as much as he likes to eat … He also very much enjoys going for walks, though, and would soon work off his “love handles” in a new home where he could get more exercise.

Max has so much to offer. He would be an ideal canine companion for a family or single person – anyone who would appreciate this big dog with the big heart.

It’s round two of ‘Fix your cat free’

This spring, we again launched our “Fix Your Cat Free” program, and it was very successful. This program spayed or neutered almost 80 cats belonging to local low income people – absolutely free! Because we are so committed to this program that helps prevent the sadness of unwanted kittens being born, we are having a second campaign beginning now.

We hope to alter another 80 or so cats, so if you are a low income South Pacific County resident and you have an unaltered cat or cats or know of someone who does, contact the shelter for a free voucher. Free is a very good price!

Diane & Friends,

Everything is just fine with Petra….we did rename her though…her new name is “Fanny”…since she walks funny from the rear view and that tail is constantly going!!
I haven’t had time to take pictures yet, but will in the next few days….She is loving the huge yard and she sleeps at the foot or side of the bed.
As for Shrunch our cat?…Well….She isn’t too fond of the new addition and Fanny….goes crazy over her…..Time will tell and I guess a few good scratches to the nose will teach her not to chase the cat!

Also Fanny will definitely be going to puppy school….she listens good…fast learner…but rebelious :-)

Here are some pic’s of Fanny at home…She loves the yard…AND the squirrels!  Will send more as time goes by.

Thank You All So Much!

Stephan & Lisa

HI!

Mandy is doing VERY well! She is a Love and her house manners are impeccable. She likes to sleep on the bed with me but always waits to be asked first (not that I expect her to! ).

All the dogs are getting along great and she is bonding with me quickly.

She is wonderful to walk and very good in the car; at some point in her life she must have had a decent home.

I have renamed her Anouk ( a Belgian name) as a Mandy and a Maddy in the same house is confusing.

I accidentally made off with your leash, by the way, and will return it as soon as possible.

Thanks so much for her, she has found her forever home. I look forward to visiting your wonderful shelter again…

Rita

Hi, there.

Our trip home was very uneventful, as Diesel slept most of the way.  However, he was a little “gassy” so we definitely kept the windows open… :-)

He is…. awesome!!

He already knows sit, down, wait, and goes to the door when he needs to go out.  I love his happy, out there personality.

He has played with the toys we gave him, and taken another nap on his new bed.  right ow he is sleeping at my feet.

I am so glad his adoption worked out for me.

Thanks sooo much.

Tiana

Hi All at the South Pacific County Humane Society.

I adopted Dani, your flat-coat retriever yesterday.  I just though that I would let all of you know that she made it home safe.  We took her down highway 30 and then highway 47 …47 is kind of a windy highway and so she didn’t really like that and puked … but considering that is was a 3.5 hour long car ride, only two pukes really wasn’t bad.  One of the times we stopped to clean it up, a man came over and asked us if we needed anything but he was a bit weird, Dani totally sensed that and got right on her protective guard-dog bark and stance.  It was kind of nice to know how protective she will be of us.

When she got in the house, she made it pretty clear that it was her house … We have a little futon that we had already decided that that is where she would sleep and she did, she slept on it all night.  We brought her to our neighbors house so that she could meet another dog, at first, I was a bit nervous, Dani was very vocal, but after a while, they were all over the yard and playing hard.  Dani definitly has power in her and a strong will.  Our other roommate loves her just as much as we do!

For the first night, she’s been great …

Thanks so much for everything.  You guys have been great

Marisa

Hi Diana!

Here are some pictures of Houston, now called Jackson. He’s very happy and loves to swim and run and play. Whew! What a bundle of energy!

Thanks again for letting me adopt such a great dog!

Best regards,
Jordan

Yay!

Gracie has been in our family since my husband I met her on our honeymoon, February 2004! When we met her, her name was Goldie and we took her to the beach where she immediately met a toddler. We didn’t know how Goldie was with kids and let the family of the toddler know, but because Goldie just sat down and let the little boy walk right up, reach out to her, and licked his hand we knew then that this was the dog for us.

We named her Gracie that day (that name just stuck out to us because of her sweet, passive demeanor) and have since added our own baby to the family! Here are some pictures of Gracie with her new pal, baby Edy. :-) As you can see, she is still just as sweet as the day we met her – Edy loves to get kisses from Gracie and plays a game where she leans in while Gracie is laying down just close enough for Gracie to lick her and then cracks up!

Gracie is the best and we can’t imagine our life in Seattle without her.

Take care and I’m so happy to have discovered your new website!

~Rachel

I thought it was about time to send a little note letting you all know how my little girl is. She is absolutely wonderful!! We are having such a good time. She went to the groomer on Saturday to have her nails trimmed and filed. She sat there like an Angel. She is really well behaved for being neglected for so long.

She knows the routine and is well adjusted to my work schedule and especially loves the weekends. She sleeps on the bed with me and usually ends up hogging the whole thing before morning.

She enjoys her food but LOVES her snacks. In fact, if she thinks it’s time for a snack she will go in the kitchen and sit and stare at the cupboard where they’re at until I get her one. It’s funny!

Hope you have lots of people adopting the animals and giving them good homes. I was so fortunate to find my Paige!!

Have a great day! :-)

Teresa

Double your pleasure, double your fun!!

Diesel and Shadow are charming young Australian Cattle Dog brothers. Cattle dogs are known for their great energy levels and active minds. They are very intelligent, take well to training, and are wonderfully loyal companions.

Aussies, however, do not like to be bored. They need a living situation where things will interest them, and prefer to be with active individuals and families. They make outstanding Frisbee and agility dogs.

These guys are on the smaller size for Cattle Dogs, and have beautiful markings and short, dense coats. Diesel and Shadow love people, and are eager to please. If you have an active lifestyle or kids who love to play, come and meet these two Aussies. They truly love each other and are very bonded, and it would be wonderful if they could go to a good home together!!!

Miss Kitty needs her own person to love

Miss Kitty ended up in the shelter when her elderly lady owner became allergic to her. Life at the shelter has been hard for this pretty five year old cat. She very much dislikes other cats, and has spent the past several months huddled in the corner of a room. Truly a bad way for her to have to spend her life…

She would be most comfortable repeating the living situation she is used to: being a loving companion for a single person or couple who has no other pets. Miss Kitty really needs a better chance again at a good life. If you have a quiet home, please come and meet her. Life is too short to spend it huddled in a corner….

Thank you to our loyal supporters

We are very appreciative to Todd Kaino and the staff of Lighthouse Realty and to Cheri Diehl of Dennis Oman Realty for their sponsorship of shelter pets. The ads they have funded have resulted in some wonderful adoptions of needy pets. Thank you so much- we are grateful for your community spirit and support!!!

Shelter wish list

We are running very low on the 13 gallon garbage bags we use so many of in keeping the shelter clean. We would be very grateful to receive donations of these bags- Costco sells some very durable bags for a very reasonable price. Thanks!!

He’s settling down a bit – didn’t try to eat the back door last time he was home alone. He loves to chase a Frisbee but he won’t bring it back. He lets us sleep in but inspires us to go out and play in the morning, which is good for everyone. And it’s just so nice to have a furball around the house again! It was so empty with Sam and Pepper gone. We’re planning to find a little sister for Jer but we’ll let him
get completely comfortable with us first.

Elisabeth

Puppies and kittens, oh my!!!

Spring is finally springing, and we have some darling puppies and kittens for adoption!!! The kittens are coming in rather slowly this year, but we do have a very cute bunch for adoption and others soon to be in the shelter from foster homes. Call the shelter for details, or visit and see these little cuties in person!!

We also have some lab mix puppies (why is it that “beach dogs” are invariably at least part lab? Probably because they are a great breed for our climate and are wonderful family dogs…) looking for good homes. Sweet little “Petra” is one of the pups available- she is about 3 and a half months old, and is well on her way to being fully housetrained. She is a very sensitive pup, and loves it when quiet, gentle people stop by to say “hi” to her.

Because she is so attentive and intelligent and eager to please, she will take well to training, and would be very loyal companion, indeed.

In the Raymond, South Bend area, we have a litter of beautiful shepherd/lab mix pups in foster care. The pups and their mom were found abandoned in the farm county of the Menlo area, and are now in foster care with Ken and Regina Miller, who are members of HAVA (Harbor Area Volunteers for Animals). Mom dog is a lovely shepherd mix, and dad was apparently from Labrador…. Ken and Regina would be glad to forward details (and darling pictures) of these pups to interested parties. They can be reached at 360-942-4718, or you can call Diana at our shelter 642-1180 for details. These pups are definitely “10’s” on the Puppy Cuteness Scale”!!!

Joshua still needs a home

Several weeks ago, we wrote about “Joshua”, a charming silver tabby that for some unknown reason had spent almost the last year of his young life in a cage at another shelter. The days have come and gone, and so have the visitors to the kitty playroom. Sadly, no one has given Josh the good home he so deserves. He is very handsome, has a short, easy-care coat, and is a mellow friend to the other cats in the room. Josh is a “go with the flow” kind of guy, and would be a wonderful addition to any home. Please come and meet him-he has so much to offer. He really needs a chance…

Thank you so much

Last week, we received a very generous monetary donation from Lorraine Unruh, to whom we are so grateful. Our shelter is totally supported by fund-raising, adoption fees, and donations- we receive no government monies. So, the care we provide needy animals is only possible with the support of our community. Thank you so much to Ms. Unruh and to all our fantastic supporters.

Hi Diana,

Sorry I haven’t been able to update you sooner, but we’ve definitely had our hands full with Jackson (formerly Jeremy). No worries though, it’s in a good way. =)

On the way home, he seemed exhausted and slept most of the way. He was probably pretty overwhelmed, maybe playing possum just in case we were headed to the vet. Once we got back to Portland, he had a chance to meet the cat and my roommates Min-Pin. Boy was he excited… He chased Ninja (the cat) for a while, then did some laps around the living room and the dining room before turning on Dakota (the dog). I guess he had built up some energy during the drive home, and he couldn’t wait to get outside to let it out. So, needless to say, we were wondering what we had gotten ourselves into.

We left him alone for the first time on Thursday afternoon, and he seemed to do just fine. There was quite a bit of barking and crying at first, but he eventually quieted down and entertained himself (probably with one of the millions of toys that we’ve bought him so far). He does love to destroy tennis balls, we’ve noticed. So far, he hasn’t been able to demolish the rope or the Kong… thank goodness.

We took him off the choke and switched to a harness, which he seems to respond very well to. His leash training is coming along quite nicely, and he’s almost impermeable to distractions from squirrels, cats, and other dogs. Birds are another story, but we’re working on it… He walks nicely by our side with minimal pulling, and he even runs on a loose leash.

We’ve visited the vet to get his general exam, rabies, Giardia, microchip, etc. I wouldn’t say he really enjoyed it, but he’ll thank us later. Hopefully. We also took him to a couple of clinics at the pet store, one on leash manners and the other on general obedience. I’m proud to say that he was the best kid in class for both. =) His sit, down, stay, and leave it are coming along great, especially if we’ve got treats.

We take him on at least 2 runs and 3 or 4 walks every day, and it seems to work for wearing him out. Jonathan runs him before work at about 7, I run him at lunch, then we take him on a few long walks in the evenings. I’m worried about how our sleep would be impaired if we didn’t exercise him that much.

So, overall, he’s doing really well. We absolutely love him, and we think he likes us quite a bit too. He’s graduated to being left in the house during the day instead of the garage, and so far, no catastrophies too big. =)

His coat is much better now, and we’ll be taking him in for his second dog wash next week. =) We also have taken him the dog park, and he absolutely loves it. Just like you said, he’s a big hit with all the other dogs (the energetic ones anyways). He loves making them chase him around for 10 miles or so until they get worn out.

We’ve had a blast with him, and we love him more than anything… He’s been a great addition to our home. He keeps us on our toes anyways. =)

Thank you so much, and I’ll keep you as updated as I can.

Kristina

Thanks so much for letting us visit with Mandy.  It’s so great that there are caring people like you and the others at the shelter who put so much effort into finding these poor dogs a home.  It would’ve been nice to just take her with us, but it was apparent we weren’t the right people for her.  She really needs someone who will take her hiking and camping in the mountains and let her be a free spirit, not two geezer-types with creaky joints like Tom and I.

I hope she finds someone to love her.  We were very sad on the way home that we left her behind.

Anyway, thanks again, and God bless.

Deb

Kuranda beds are awesome. The “chewproof” design works well for both our indoor and outdoor kennels and they are safe for chewing puppies and anxious adults. They’re soft, comfortable, last for years, and keep dogs off the floor. They’re easy to clean and deodorize and we can replace the fabric and parts when needed.

Might you donate a Kuranda bed to our shelter? Click here!

By Cory McKeown with Photos by Melanie Epping

Maggie

In the harsh weather of last November, Maggie’s people moved and just left her to fend for herself. Sadly, that wasn’t all…. they left her with her tiny kittens to care for. Kindly neighbors brought this sweet young mom cat and her babies into our shelter, where they would be warm and safe.

The weeks passed, and as it so often happens, Maggie’s kittens were all adopted to good homes. This has left this pretty kitty lingering in the shelter, waiting for the time when she to will have her forever home.

Maggie is a lovely tortoiseshell- patterned girl with a short, plush, easy care coat that shines with multiple colors. She was a little shy when she first came to the shelter, but over the months she has been with us, has become much more outgoing and affectionate. She would thrive in a quieter home, and would be a good companion for another cat or gentle dog. Please come and ask to meet this loyal little cat. She deserves and needs a chance to have a better life.

Roxy’s not really serious- she is a clown at heart!!

When people stop by Roxy’s cage to say “hi” to her, they are sometimes fooled by her serious-looking demeanor and intense yellow eyes. While this young Aussie shepherd mix might look very serious, she is in fact a clown that loves people and loves to play!

Spend some time with her and have a toy with you and she is your best friend- she actually is one of those dogs that can smile!

Roxy comes alive with attention, and is a delight to be around. She is extremely intelligent and affectionate, and very trainable and eager to please. Roxy is a great size, is trim, healthy and athletic, and has a bobbed tail and a short, glossy dark pewter colored coat.

This young dog would be an ideal companion for an active person or family. She would probably be happiest being an “only pet”.

Got tennis ball? Going camping? Roxy is the canine companion to make your life more fun!!!